Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Blueberry Kouign Amann {Spring Serendipity}

Remember my Kouign Amann v.2? The dough is so easy that I've made several versions. It's a little time intensive...you just have to remember to do the dough the night before you want to bake!

Last week, while we were in the desert, the kids asked for pastries, so I made a version with apricot jam. For Easter, I had some gorgeous blueberries from Serendipity Farms and decided to make a larger blossom for dessert. One of our desserts. I served three to cap off our Easter feast!

Combine the water, yeast, and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Let stand for 15 minutes for the yeast to bloom. Add 2 1/2 C of the flour, keeping 1/4 C for later, and the salt. Stir with a wooden spoon until a shaggy dough forms.

Cover the mixing bowl and let the dough rise until doubled in size, approximately one hour. While the dough chills, pound 1/2 C butter between two pieces of parchment paper into a rectangle. Repeat so that you have two pieces of flattened butter. Place them in the fridge while the dough rises.

While the dough rises, make the blueberry mixture. Place 2 C fresh blueberries in a mixing bowl with the turbinado sugar and lemon juice. Gently mash with a potato masher to express some of the juice. Leave some berries whole. Stir to combine and cover.

Sprinkle a piece of parchment paper with flour and place dough on top. Roll the dough into a rectangle approximately 12"x 20". Remove one chilled slab of butter from the fridge and lay it in the middle of the dough. Fold the corners of the dough in to form an envelope.

Using the rolling pin, roll it out to 12"20" again. Place the second slab of butter on the dough and fold the corners of the dough in, again. Roll it out one more time. This time, fold one third of the dough over the other third, like folding a letter. This creates very thin layers of butter and dough.

Rotate the package of dough and butter so that the narrower, open end is facing you, like the pages of a book. Roll the dough out to a rectangle and fold the top third down and the bottom third up, again like a letter. Rotate the dough 90 degrees so that the open end is again facing you. Repeat. Roll the dough out to a rectangle and fold the top third down and the bottom third up. That's 2 turns.

Cover dough with plastic wrap, and refrigerate 30 minutes. Remove the dough from the fridge and transfer it to a well-floured surface. With the open end facing you, roll the dough out to a rectangle, again. Fold the top third down and the bottom third up. Rotate the dough 90 degrees and repeat. That's 4 turns.

Cover the dough, again, with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for another 30 minutes. During this last rise, put the finishing touches on the blueberry filling. Stir in 1 C blueberries and, again, mash slightly. The last cup of fresh bluberries is for garnishing when you serve.

Remove the dough from the fridge and roll the dough out to approximately 1/4" thick. Sprinkle 1 C of sugar and cut to fit your baking dish with a little bit of overhang. Place the dough in the dish and fill with the blueberry mixture. Let stand and rise for about 30 minute at room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 400°F about half-way through the rise. Place the kouign amann in the oven and immediately turn the heat down to 350°F. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. It's finished when the crust is a deep golden and the tips look as if they might be just starting to burn.

Let cool for 5 to 10 minutes in the baking dish but be sure remove them after that. If it cools completely in the baking dish, it will be impossible to remove. Gently wiggle the pastry out of the tray, then transfer the kouign amann to a wire rack to finish cooling completely. Best served the day they are baked...though I've never had any leftovers!

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Just about any occasion sends me to the kitchen to create. My pots and pans are my culinary canvas. I cook dinners for friends' birthdays, for holidays, and three times a day for my family.

My hope is that my descriptions and photos will inspire you to get out to the farmers markets or down an aisle at the grocery store that intimidates you, try some new ingredients, and get crazy with the herbs and spices! Buon appetito!

All the recipes and photos on my blog are original, unless otherwise noted, and are provided for your enjoyment and use. If you do use any of the content of this blog in yours, I ask that you acknowledge the source. Thank you.